Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...In honor of the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love, and as a counternarrative to our present Summer of Intolerance, "Hair" has sprung up in the friendly confines of the Mercury Theater in the Southport Corridor. That's just to the west of Rickettsville, where one can only hope for a rerun of the Age of Aquarius."
Chicago Sun Times - Recommended
"...Now a half century old, "Hair" has returned, this time in a Mercury Theater Chicago production that is at once grand-scale yet intimate as well as fiercely energetic, and aims to capture the fashion (via Robert Kuhn's fringe, beads and neo-gypsy costumes), attitudes (a brew of peace, love, militancy and hedonism), anxieties and marijuana haze of the period (even if, ironically, the stuff is increasingly being legalized)."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...Director Brenda Didier and musical director Eugene Dizon have assembled a terrific young ensemble, with passionately compelling performances coming from Liam Quealy as Claude-the Aquarian hippie messiah "destined for greatness or madness"-and Michelle Lauto as his antiwar activist disciple Sheila."
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...Now grooving at the Mercury Theatre, Brenda Didier’s revival reinvents the magic over two generations later: In effect, the actuarial grandchildren of the show’s first coming invoke its indomitable spirit in this latest reprise. Created 50 years ago by James Rado and Gerome Ragni, with music by Galt MacDermot, Hair was, as the title implies, a celebration of youth and vitality. It’s comprised of neo-vaudevillian, in-your-face, sweetly warbled “songs as stunts” whose names—“Hashish,” “Sodomy,” “Colored Spade,” “I Got Love”—are unashamed, message-mongering manifestos."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...Hair is one of those theatrical experiences everyone should have at least once. This Mercury Theatre’s production is one of the best I’ve seen since the original. It does those hippies justice. Be sure to experience this production."
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...The Mercury Theater appears to be a great venue for this production in a much more intimate form than I have seen it before. Under the careful direction of Brenda Didier and cleverly choreographed by Chris Carter, this Two Hour and Ten-minute production ( 2 acts with an intermission) is very sharp in manner and technique, grabbing the audience's attention from the first minute to the very last (and even then, during the curtain call-no one wanted it to end)."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...But the real strength behind this production is Brenda Didier’s faithfully created, intense camaraderie that the script demands. Creatively choreographed by Chris Carter, Ms. Didier has sensitively guided her actors, creating a tribe, a real family, each of whom clearly and lovingly cares for and supports one another. This is displayed visually through trust falls and several aero-ballet moves, wherein actors seem to fly through space, all because each performer believes in his cast mates being there. The close proximity to the action brings an immediacy to situations that many audience members may never have experienced. This production will be long counted among Mercury Theater’s finest, in a long line of great shows. It’s a heartfelt celebration of love, friendship and exuberant defiance that won’t soon be forgotten."
Chicagoland Theater Reviews - Highly Recommended
"...With this outstanding revival, the Mercury Theater can congratulate itself on breathing new life into a semi-forgotten American musical masterpiece to, sending today’s audiences on a memorable voyage of either remembrance or discovery. The production cries out for an open run transfer."
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Highly Recommended
"...More so than most musicals, Hair lives and dies by the strength of its ensemble and its indviduals’ abilities to function as a unit. This is perhaps the biggest strength of Mercury’s production, as the ensemble blends beautifully both musically and physically, creating a sense of intimacy that draws the audience in despite the sense of culture shock often elicited by the show’s first act."
Third Coast Review - Highly Recommended
"...The music by Galt MacDermot with book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado still have the bounce and charm they had 50 years ago. Chris Carter's choreography makes great use of Kmiec's multi-level stage design. Costumes are by Robert Kuhn and sound design by Carl Wahlstrom. The six-member band, led by music director Dizon on keyboards, featured bass, guitar, trumpet, woodwinds and percussion."
The Hawk Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...All of this can be summed up by saying that this may be the best ensemble cast of 2017, and I still feel like a gushing fan girl for the production in many ways. They managed to make a believer out of this Hair-hater. More importantly, this cast opened my eyes to the layers of racial, social, and political issues that the play presents. I may never love the book, but I have a new understanding and love for the lyrics, songs, and characters; a new respect for this much-loved musical. So maybe, just maybe, in 30 or so years I’ll be the elderly woman sitting there mouthing all the lyrics, dancing in my seat, and punching my fist in the air, like my captivated neighbor on Sunday afternoon."
